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Monday, April 30, 2012

Maybe Adam got a little ahead of himself; the series is far from over. But there is no doubt that the Clippers made a huge statement last night in Memphis by mounting one of the biggest comebacks in NBA playoff history. Stealing a road game is big in any playoff series, but a victory of this magnitude is huge for the Clippers momentum. Additionally, giving up a 27 point lead at home has to be devastatingly demoralizing in the Grizzlies' locker room.

Some thoughts...

The Grizzlies aren't going to play that well for three quarters of basketball ever again. They made it rain, shooting 68% from behind the arc as a team. That obviously won't continue. Rest assured, Mike Conley Jr. won't be dancing around like that idiot at the gym that everyone hates any longer.

I hate to pull this excuse out, but the officiating seemed brutally one-sided. I know, it's the officiating always sucks, and someone always has something to bitch about, but it seemed absurd. Am I being a homer? Whatever.

Deandre Jordan looked awful. He finished with 5 points and 7 rebounds. Like we talked about in the round table, if he doesn't show up to play, we are going to have a tough time having any presence in the paint. He needs to wake up and show up.

Swaggy P!!!!! Nick Young is the man. (When he hit that third three pointer, the entire Hip to Clipp staff sounded like a group of 13 year old girls getting a strip tease from the cast of Twilight.)

Vinny, go small! With Caron going down, I really hope we don't see 30 minutes from Bobby Simmons. Change it up, get Mo and Bledsoe in there. Keep it interesting, when things are stagnant get those energy guys in there.

Speaking of Energy... Eric Bledsoe and Reggie Evans. YES! These guys are huge sparks off the bench and we can't say enough positive things about them. Their hustle and enthusiasm is unmatched. Although limited, their minutes are very valuable to keeping this team in close games.

What a fantastic game to watch. We did learn, though, that it won't be easy. The first three quarters of game 1 were a perfect storm in the Grizzlies favor, that won't happen again. However, there's no doubt that this series will be one of two good teams battling it out.

Thursday, April 19, 2012

Hip to Clipp staff writers Vince Robbins, Scott Lerner, and Adam Levine sit down with Clippersaddict Michael Freeman for the first Roundtable of the 2012 season.

1. We know CP3 and BG will be integral to the success (or failure) of the team in the playoffs. Assuming they perform as well as they have all season, who’s the third most important player? Who’s the game-changer that will define how the team performs this postseason?Vince: On the negative side—the player that could do the most damage if they don’t play well—is DeAndre. We’ve seen him come out of the first half with no rebounds, no points, and it’s really almost impossible for our offense and defense, on the starting unit, to function without him playing well—or at least okay. On the positive side—who could add the most—is Mo Williams. I think he could definitely be our Jason Terry off the bench, and take over a game, having 25 off the bench, getting the crowd involved. Michael: I’ll have to agree. Mo Williams, or any guard in addition to Chris Paul, that can handle the ball, be dynamic, that can score, is essential. Mo, Nick Young, Randy Foye…we really need a two guard scoring off the dribble, making his own shot, to take some of the burden off Chris Paul to have any real success in the playoffs.Adam: I’m going to go with Kenyon Martin. K-Mart was acquired to give the Clippers a scoring option up front. He has the skills in the post that Blake and Deandre struggle with, and has the experience to be a pillar alongside one of our young bigs. Scott: DeAndre Jordan. If we have an absent center, as DeAndre often is with his foul trouble, etc., we don’t stand a chance in a seven-game series against any team with a solid bigman—the Lakers, Thunder, and Grizzlies come to mind. Without DeAndre, I can just see Marc Gasol having a lot of fun around the rim.

Tuesday, April 10, 2012

We've received numerous letters, e-mails, tweets, smoke signals, and frantic late night phone calls from fans around the league terrified that something had gone terrible wrong.

No hilariously self-depricating tweets? No long-winded posts exposing life-long Clipper icons as frauds? Not even the lazy YouTube video posts?

(Okay, okay... we were responding to @ClipsGirl's Direct Messages on Twitter…What?)

But we're here to clear the air. We're not dead, and neither are the Clippers. We just had a rough March; twenty Clippers' games, the death of Whitney, the premier of The Hunger Games, two girlfriend break-ups, Passover / Easter, a pregnancy scare, Attention Deficit Disorder, and a lot of whiskey…How were we supposed to find time to write?

But the playoffs are close at hand, and your trusty Clipper friends / mentors / icons are here, right by your side, to hold your hand during this unfamiliar time. Although the 2006 playoffs feel like yesterday, it was a long time ago, and our team and fan base have changed. Clipper Nation must stand together, stronger than ever, and ride this magic carpet ride as far as we can.